Craftivism: The Book is HERE!

The woman who coined the term ‘craftivism’ just released her latest book, and you can snag it right now!

You guys! Betsy Greer’s new book – Craftivism: The Art of Craft and Activism – is available now! The release date was originally set for sometime in May, but I just checked Amazon, and it’s showing as ready to ship!

Even more exciting? (Well, more exciting for me, anyway…) Betsy asked me to write an essay on upcycling for the book! The essay was the first thing I was able to write after having Darrol, and it felt good to work on a project that is so close to my heart.

If you follow me regularly, you probably know that Darrol Henry made his appearance a few weeks early. He was happy and healthy, but man oh man did that put a dent in my carefully planned ‘Things to Do Before the Baby’ list. At the top of the list was to write my upcycling essay for the Craftivism book because the essay due date was very close to my baby’s due date. Oops!

The book’s cover is gorgeous, and I can’t wait to get my copy, so I can thumb through all of the other essays in its pages.

Craftivism the book is a collaborative effort. Thirty three artists and crafters submitted essays to its pages, and Betsy edited them and tied them all together.

The publishers shared a few excerpts from essays in the book, and there were a couple that really stuck out for me. First, there’s this from Faythe Levine:

My personal relationship with craft is a direct lifeline to my connection with the punk community. Through punk I was shown that I could begin to make an alternate history from the one I was presented with in school and society. I saw examples of people making real changes in their communities through direct action and education. Punk was a permission-giver and, in turn, craft became my vessel. Punk allowed me to connect with others and formulate how I wanted my future to look through creating approachable artwork, blogging, making my work understandable through personal stories, starting my own gallery, becoming an independent researcher, and making documentary films.

Ultimately, guerrilla kindness is about discovering that people care about one another, and that someone out there cares about you. Therefore, guerrilla kindness work is about extending your community. It’s about reaching out your hand to a stranger and using your skills to make someone’s day brighter.